What books are similar to Red Kayak?

The 10 closest matches to Red Kayak by Priscilla Cummings on ReadingList include Fourth Grade Rats, The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, Trading Places with Tank Talbott, Dogtown, and Ungifted. Each is scored on shared themes (death, conduct of life, and boats and boating), shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades 6–8), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.

Are books like Red Kayak reading-level appropriate?

Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades 6–8), so the picks stay grade-appropriate. See how ReadingList judges text difficulty on the /standard methodology page.

How does ReadingList choose similar books?

Matches are ranked by shared themes, shared award and reading-program lists (two books picked for the same state award were chosen by the same committees for the same readers), same genre, comparable Lexile and grade band, and publication decade — computed from cited public curriculum data, not editorial opinion or AI-generated summaries.

Books like Red Kayak

If you liked Red Kayak, read Fourth Grade Rats, The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, or Trading Places with Tank Talbott — the closest matches in our database, matched on shared themes, shared award lists, and reading level.

Looking for books like Red Kayak by Priscilla Cummings (Realistic Fiction · grades 6–8)? It’s most often read for its themes of death, conduct of life, and boats and boating. The 10 titles below are the closest matches in the ReadingList database — each scored on shared themes, shared award lists, genre, and reading level, and each linked to the curricula, states, and grades where it’s assigned, with primary sources.

These are reading-level matches, not just topical ones — so the picks stay grade-appropriate for a grades 6–8 reader. See how we judge text difficulty on our methodology page.

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Why each is a match

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Fourth Grade Ratsgrades 4–6: Shares themes of conduct of life and friendship, both on the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award list, and same genre (Realistic Fiction). Amazon → books like this →
The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pantsgrades 7–10: Shares themes of friendship, both on the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award list, and same genre (Realistic Fiction). Amazon → books like this →
Trading Places with Tank Talbottgrades 4–6: Shares themes of friendship, both on the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award list, and same genre (Realistic Fiction). Amazon → books like this →
Dogtowngrades 3–6: Shares themes of friendship, both on the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award list, and same genre (Realistic Fiction). Amazon → books like this →
Ungiftedgrades 5–8: Shares themes of friendship, both on the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award list, and same genre (Realistic Fiction). Amazon → books like this →
Wild Wingsgrades 4–6: Shares themes of friendship, both on the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award list, and same genre (Realistic Fiction). Amazon → books like this →
Dork Diaries: Tales from a Not-So-Fabulous Life890L: Shares themes of friendship, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (4–7). Amazon → books like this →
Hoot760L: Shares themes of friendship, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (4–7). Amazon → books like this →
Perfectgrades 6–9: Shares themes of death, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (6–9). Amazon → books like this →
Rulesgrades 4–7: Shares themes of friendship, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (4–7). Amazon → books like this →

Books like Red Kayak for younger readers (K–2)

Closest matches whose grade range overlaps K–2— same scoring, different audience.

Memoirs of a Goldfish by Devin Scillian · grades K–3 — Shares themes of friendship, both on the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award list, and same genre (Realistic Fiction).
He Came With the Couch by David Slonim · grades K–3 — Shares themes of friendship and same genre (Realistic Fiction).
Say What? by Margaret Peterson Haddix · grades 2–8 — Shares themes of conduct of life, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (2–8).
Diary of a Wombat by Jackie French · grades K–3 — Both on the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award list, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and the same era (2000s).
Don't Need Friends by Carolyn Crimi · grades K–2 — Shares themes of friendship and same genre (Realistic Fiction).

Books like Red Kayak for elementary readers (grades 3–5)

Closest matches whose grade range overlaps 3–5— same scoring, different audience.

Memoirs of a Goldfish by Devin Scillian · grades K–3 — Shares themes of friendship, both on the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award list, and same genre (Realistic Fiction).
He Came With the Couch by David Slonim · grades K–3 — Shares themes of friendship and same genre (Realistic Fiction).
Say What? by Margaret Peterson Haddix · grades 2–8 — Shares themes of conduct of life, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (2–8).
Stepping Up by Mark Fink · grades 3–8 — Shares themes of friendship, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (3–8).
The Gollywhopper Games by Jody Feldman · grades 3–8 — Shares themes of conduct of life, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (3–8).

Books like Red Kayak for middle school (grades 6–8)

Closest matches whose grade range overlaps 6–8— same scoring, different audience.

Say What? by Margaret Peterson Haddix · grades 2–8 — Shares themes of conduct of life, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (2–8).
Stepping Up by Mark Fink · grades 3–8 — Shares themes of friendship, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (3–8).
The Gollywhopper Games by Jody Feldman · grades 3–8 — Shares themes of conduct of life, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (3–8).
The Stranger Next Door by Peg Kehret · grades 3–8 — Shares themes of friendship, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (3–8).
A Boy Named Queen by Sara Cassidy · grades 3–8 — Shares themes of friendship, same genre (Realistic Fiction), and overlapping grades (3–8).

Books like Red Kayak for high school & teens (grades 9–12)

Closest matches whose grade range overlaps 9–12— same scoring, different audience.

Say Goodnight, Gracie by Julie Reece Deaver · grades 9–12 — Shares themes of death and friendship and same genre (Realistic Fiction).
Someone Like You by Sarah Dessen · grades 9–12 — Shares themes of friendship, both on the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award list, and same genre (Realistic Fiction).
The Silver Kiss by Annette Curtis Klause · grades 9–12 — Shares themes of death, both on the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award list, and same genre (Realistic Fiction).
Sold by Patricia McCormick · grades 9–12 — Shares themes of friendship and same genre (Realistic Fiction).
The Second Summer of the Sisterhood by Ann Brashares · grades 9–12 — Shares themes of conduct of life and same genre (Realistic Fiction).

Common questions

What books are similar to Red Kayak?: The 10 closest matches to Red Kayak by Priscilla Cummings on ReadingList include Fourth Grade Rats, The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, Trading Places with Tank Talbott, Dogtown, and Ungifted. Each is scored on shared themes (death, conduct of life, and boats and boating), shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades 6–8), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.
Are books like Red Kayak reading-level appropriate?: Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades 6–8), so the picks stay grade-appropriate. See how ReadingList judges text difficulty on the /standard methodology page.
How does ReadingList choose similar books?: Matches are ranked by shared themes, shared award and reading-program lists (two books picked for the same state award were chosen by the same committees for the same readers), same genre, comparable Lexile and grade band, and publication decade — computed from cited public curriculum data, not editorial opinion or AI-generated summaries.

Book data last updated 2026-09-05. Matches are computed from each book’s cited attributes — see the methodology.

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